Periodic Nausea
A brother who is reported to suffer from attacks of periodic nausea about as often as the Bible Banner appears relates a very pathetic case wherein "a splendid Christian woman" fell very suddenly and figuratively sick at her figurative stomach. The sad situation is presented in these words:
A splendid Christian woman who had been reading what purported to be a religious journal threw it down and exclaimed: "That makes me sick!" Her action was suited to her words. Even her expression of face indicated her indignation and feeling of nausea.
The brother chivalrously shared the indignation of the sick sister and suffered such a violent sympathetic attack that soon his "action was suited to her words." A whole article on sick women and sick preachers is calculated to precipitate a widespread epidemic of upset weak stomachs, so I think it expedient to pass around a little soda and paregoric as a sort of first aid treatment until the doctor arrives.
When the doctor arrives he is going to want to know what made the patient sick, isolate the contamination that has no place in a decent stomach, and warn others to "handle not, nor taste, nor touch." This "splendid" and innocent victim picked up something she evidently thought was good, partook of it in hope, and threw it down too late. She "had been reading what purported to be a religious journal." Not being a woman, I'm not very curious, but I'm just dying to know what that woman was reading. The brother evidently knows and tantalizingly withholds the information. Such cruelty ought not to be allowed. Just think how many people throughout the country will be sitting around anxiously trying to figure out what religious journal is "purported" and more likely than otherwise to turn upside down the insides of unsuspecting seekers of spiritual provender. I wish the Brother had called some names. It might help stave off "an epidemic of quarrellings, divisions, and lawsuits." It may be that somebody in authority ought to nominate him to compile a sort of "Consumers' Digest" as a guide for brethren and sisters with weak stomachs. Some nauseated sister could possibly be found to second the motion. If he will assume the task on his own, without nomination, I think we would be willing to publish his findings in the Bible Banner. If "there is really no cure for this dreadful malady" then the sources of contagion ought to be dried up. There is nothing like publicity, pitiless and pointed and personal, to get the job done. We want to help smoke out this disease carrier who "can never think, speak, or write on any question without bringing in his hobby, and then he loses all sense of proportion and raves and rants." It is possible that we are cold-trailing him already, but if the brother can give us a short cut to a hot trail by calling his name, we might tree him or hole him up the sooner.
If the sex and circumstances of this sad case of nausea had been somewhat different, even with no names called, I would have thought that maybe the brother was describing Brother Boll, or Brother Janes, or Brother Jorgenson at the Neal-Wallace debate. It is reported that they all got pretty sick and their action was also suited to their words. Dr. Wood is also reported to have displayed similar symptoms over what the editor of the Bible Banner did to Dr. Norris in the Fort Worth debate. In view of some letters I have received from some sick sisters and a few upset brethren, I might conclude that the sister in this case "had been reading" the Bible Banner but since she "had been reading what purported to be a religious journal" that clears us of any responsibility in the case. Whatever we are, we are not "purported." I do wish the brother would tell the brethren what she was reading as some of us would give nearly anything to know and the absence of information is likely to lead to a riot of speculation. She might even have been reading the Firm Foundation, or what Brother Goodpasture, or Brother Boles said about Brother Witty and his unity meetings in the Gospel Advocate. It could be that she had been reading about how preachers who came under Brother R. H. Boll's influence came under direct spiritual influences and began to work miracles or ran off and joined the digressives or took up with some other hobby contrary to the sound doctrine. There are plenty of things happening that we can read about and feel sick over. A few of the brethren are so love-sick over Brother Boll that they think anybody is a fanatic who does anything worse than crook his finger at him. I'm about ready to give up. We may never find out what the sister was reading as I have a hunch that the brother is not going to tell us. We want to know so bad that if the Gospel Advocate will not let him tell it, we will give his space in the Advocate will not let him tell it, we will give him space in the a singular case of "Much Ado About Nothing." The membership of the body of Christ is large enough that it is entirely possible that the victim of sudden sickness was merely allergic to sound doctrine or a legitimate danger signal. There are some "who will not endure the sound doctrine." It makes them sick. Ever since I have been reading the Gospel Advocate and the Firm Foundation, and it covers a wide space of years, David Lipscomb, M. C. Kurfees, E. A. Elam, F. W. Smith, the Srygleys, A. McGary, G. H. P. Showalter and other vigorous writers and preachers have been making people "sick." I have even known some of them to turn slightly pale over the lukewarm potions Brother Brewer has mixed up for them. So it is really not necessary to get too excited when some "splendid Christian woman" has a fainting spell over something she "had been reading."-C. E. W.